Lehigh Mountain Hawks
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Lehigh Mountain Hawks are the athletic teams representing Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. The Mountain Hawks participate in NCAA Division I competition as a member of the Patriot League. In football, Lehigh competes in the Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), still frequently known by its former designation of Division I-AA.
Lehigh's athletic teams were known as the Engineers until November 1995 and that name is still used to refer to teams before then. As the university expanded by 50% in the 1970-1990 timeframe, participation in the College of Engineering remained static, and now only comprises one third of the student body. The teams' name was thus changed by a vote of the Student Senate to the Mountain Hawks, though some old alumni object. [1]
Lehigh is especially known for its football rivalry with Lafayette College, the most frequently-played matchup in college football history.
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[edit] Baseball and softball
Lehigh has very successful programs in both baseball (men) and softball (women), having won both Patriot League titles in 2006 and advancing to the NCAA play-offs.
[edit] Basketball
Lehigh is also competitive in men's and women's basketball. Both teams play in Stabler Arena. The men's team won the Patriot League in 2004 and was third in 2006 with an 11-3 record. Former Coach Billy Taylor was Patriot League coach of the year in 2003-2004.
The women's team struggled and was 5-9 in Patriot League play in 2006.
Lehigh men's team struggled to 7-7, 12-19 overall record. They lost in the Quarterfinal Final Round to Army 47-46. On August 7, 2007 their coach Billy Taylor was hired by Ball State and on August 10, 2007 assistant Brett Reed was made new coach.
[edit] Football
The varsity football team is a Division I FCS team that has enjoyed success in the past decade. In 2006, The Mountain Hawks were Patriot League Co-champions with Lafayette College, giving the Lehigh Football an unprecedented eight Patriot League titles, including six in the last nine seasons. The team is suffering through a now four game losing streak to their arch rival Lafayette College Leopards, a first since 1947-1950. Lehigh won the Division II national championship in 1977.
Football games are well-attended at Lehigh's Goodman Stadium which has been voted the best place to watch a Patriot League football game for the past six years.[2] Tailgate parties are a big part of the experience, attracting many students and alumni who attend the games.
[edit] Soccer
Both the men's and women's teams are highly competitive. The 2006 Men's team had a 15-2-3 overall record and became the first Patriot League team to go a perfect 7-0 in league play. They advanced to the third round of the NCAA play-offs before losing to the number one seed.
The Women's team was Patriot League co-champion in 2005.
[edit] Wrestling
Lehigh's wrestling team competes in the EIWA. Lehigh has a strong tradition in wrestling, and often wins the league and places in the top 10 at the NCAA championships. Lehigh is considered one of the best private schools in the country for wrestling, having had 26 national NCAA individual champions and 121 All Americans. Its last national champion was Troy Letters.
Lehigh graduates coach wrestling at many institutions including Jason Kutz (1998), head wrestling coach at East Stroudsburg University; Chris Ayres (1999), head wrestling coach at Princeton University; Cory Cooperman (2006), assistant wrestling coach at Cornell University; Troy Letters (2006) and Derek Zinck (2006), assistant wrestling coaches at Princeton University.
In 2006, the Lehigh wrestling team marked their fifth straight EIWA championship. The current head coach is Greg Strobel and the team's home in Grace Hall is often referred to as "The Snakepit".
